


Healing

by londoncorgis



Category: Kirby (Video Games), Kirby - All Media Types
Genre: Fluff and Angst, Hurt/Comfort, M/M, Planet Robobot Spoilers
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-06-16
Updated: 2016-06-16
Packaged: 2018-07-15 12:50:52
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,075
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7223047
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/londoncorgis/pseuds/londoncorgis
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>King Dedede wasn't normally one to care so much about another person, but seeing his royal knight so broken and afraid caused him to be uncharacteristically gentle. (Post-Planet Robobot, so there are spoilers. Gijinka fic.)</p>
            </blockquote>





	Healing

The king twiddled his thumbs as he stood outside the door. He had been like this for several minutes now, knowing he should knock instead of just barging in, but not sure if there was even a point in trying. Meta Knight had only come outside his room a couple of times in the past week or so, and Dedede was worried. He was insistent on his knight taking time off from work to recover both physically and mentally, but that didn't mean to isolate himself.

Concerns rose up in his mind. Was Meta Knight eating alright? Had he been changing his bandages regularly? Had he been able to sleep? Did he blame himself? Dedede knew how the other could be when something bad happened, but he never reacted like this. Usually he continued to go about his life as if nothing changed, except he bottled things inside, until one day Dedede would be spending time with him and it'd explode.

His focus snapped back to the door in front of him, with Meta Knight on the other side, hopefully. He stared at it for a few more moments, before slowly and cautiously knocking on the door.

"...Meta Knight? D'you mind if I come in?"

It was silent for what felt like eternity. "...Go ahead, Your Majesty."

Dedede poked his head in, shining light into the otherwise dull lit room. The knight was sitting cross-legged on his bed, looking down at a book, although he didn't seem to be actually reading it. The door closed softly, and the king shuffled over.

"Are you alright? Anything hurt?" He tried not to get too close.

Meta shut the book and shook his head. "Nothing I can't manage. My arms and shoulders are still a bit sore, and my face feels weird, but I'm fine." That's right. The mask controlling him had exploded while he was still wearing it. The damage wasn't too serious, thankfully, but he would definitely have some new scars after this, not to mention the injuries on his arms, too. That robot armor really did a number on him...

"Well... Do you want lunch? I'm sure you're hungry."

He shook his head again, "No. I'm not hungry."

Dedede squinted at him. "Have you eaten anything today?" Meta Knight was avoiding eye contact. "I'll take that as a no."

"Didn't you hear me? I said I didn't need anything." The knight had begun to get off the bed.

Even so, the other was already heading to the door. "You can say that all you want, but I'm gonna get you food anyway. Not eating will only make you feel wo--" The slightly out-of-character lecture was cut short as he was grabbed by the back of his robe. His head turned around slowly to see his knight holding tightly onto the fabric, staring up at him. "...What's wrong?"

Meta realized the situation and pulled his arm back, blushing slightly. He rubbed his forehead, sighing. He stumbled over his words, "I...I'm sorry, I just-- You-- I don't know what came over..." He paused to collect himself and looked back up. "Could you just...Stay here, Your Majesty?" Dedede nodded slowly, following him back to the bed.

His Majesty hesitantly placed a hand on Meta's shoulder as they sat down, met with a startled jump, but no effort to push away. The two sat like this for a couple of silent, but relaxing moments, before the king quietly spoke up.

"Do you...Do you want to tell me what's wrong?" More silence. "...Is it about Haltmann?" Meta tensed up, before shutting his eyes and sighing. Dedede pat his shoulder and gently ran a hand through his dark blue hair. It was soft. He waited for a few more moments, unsure how exactly to comfort him, but it seemed like it was working...

It took a while for Meta to speak. He was trying to keep calm, but his voice shook with every breath. "I...I let them take control of me...I wasn't strong enough to--" He took a deep breath and rubbed at his eyes. "Wasn't strong enough to protect Dreamland. I'm a-...A _failure_." The knight trailed off and held his face in his hands. "I've failed this country...I-I failed _you_."

"Hey, wait," Dedede's voice was unusually gentle, "It wasn't your fault, Meta Knight. Don't blame yourself for this!" This was so strange...The warrior next to him, the great Sir Meta Knight, was normally so confident and strong. But now...Now he was so afraid, so vulnerable. It was almost scary to see him like this, and the King felt so useless, not knowing what to do to help him. Meta grabbed his arm and looked up at him, struggling to hold back the tears forming in his eyes.

"It _is_ my fault! I let them catch me off guard and turn me into some...Some mindless killing machine! I-I was too weak to do anything about it..." His voice began to break. "I-I almost...I could've hurt Kirby...I could have killed them! I saw how upset they were, but I couldn't do a thing about it. A-a-and then there was this explosion and I was in s-so much pain but they just forced me to fight again...Do you know what would have happened if Kirby didn't--"

"Meta, listen to me." Suddenly, he was ripped from his memories, coming back to reality, two firm hands holding him by the arms and dark eyes with the most serious expression ever seen on the king. "You are _not_ weak. You haven't failed anyone, not Dreamland, and definitely not me. Kirby was able to stop you, and you both saved me and the rest of Popstar. That's what matters." Dedede's expression softened and his hands held Meta by the sides of his face. "I don't want to see you like this. You're too...Too special to me."

"Your Majesty..." Tears finally began to stain the other's cheeks. "I-I'm sorry..."

"You don't have to be sorry," the king brought him close and held him, "It's okay. You're okay."

"I was so scared..." The soft, cracking voice was muffled against Dedede's chest. The anxiety and flashbacks slowly faded away as Dedede rubbed his back and calmly assured him that he would be alright. He'd eventually regress, feeling afraid again, but he knew that his friends, especially the king, would be there. For now, he was safe.


End file.
